Grisoft acquires Exploit Prevention Labs
AVG to incorporate LinkScanner in further consolidation of security offerings.
Grisoft, developer of the AVG security product whose free version is widely deployed on home-user
desktops, has announced the acquisition of Exploit Prevention Labs, a small firm whose headline product
LinkScanner focuses on detecting exploit attempts in web pages before they are visited.
LinkScanner is designed to spot attempts to exploit vulnerable software by websites, and to block such attempts
until vulnerabilities can be patched. A 'Lite' version of the product is made available free, and is expected to
be rolled into the free-for-personal-use version of AVG, while the more fully featured versions will become
part of Grisoft's expanding product line, which includes the Ewido anti-spyware solution the company
acquired last spring.
Financial details of the deal have not been released, but the acquisition was supported by Intel Capital
investment, who bought a sizeable stake in Grisoft just over two years ago. Industry veteran and
Exploit Prevention Labs co-founder Roger Thompson will become Chief Research Officer at Grisoft, while
other staff and facilities will also be absorbed into the Grisoft operation.
The move follows a string of acquisitions in the security marketplace recently, with many security firms expanding to
cover a broader spectrum of threats. Anti-spyware specialist Webroot merged
with email and web filtering firm Email Systems, while Symantec and
Trend Micro have bought into data leak prevention and McAfee has
invested in encryption and website trust rating
firms, all in the last few months.
Full details of the Grisoft acquisition can be found on its website
here, with some more from Exploit Prevention Labs
here.
05 December 2007
Tags:
acquisition, corporate, exploit, grisoft, vulnerability.
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